It’s another bad air day here in Michigan. If you haven’t already, check out our podcast episode from June 7th for information on how to stay safe during days like today. But today we want to talk about another part of the wildfire story: weather.

GUEST:

Jeff Andresen,  state climatologist for Michigan

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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Stateside's Studio Visits introduces you to artists across Michigan – and their workspaces. When you spend time where artists work, you can pick up a lot about what makes them tick, and what shapes their creative process.

In this episode, we take you to the west side of the state to meet an artist who uses glass to make sense of our changing cities.

GUEST:

Norwood Viviano, Michigan Radio reporter

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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The landmark Dobbs ruling overturned nearly 50 years of protections offered by Roe v. Wade, and created a patchwork of abortion access and barriers across the US. But in Michigan, we’ve seen a surge of out-of-state patients coming here for abortions. We're looking at how the number of out of state patients tripled in Michigan a year after the fall of Roe.

GUEST:

Kate Wells, Michigan Radio reporter

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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Enbridge’s Line 5 crude oil and natural gas pipeline is at the center of a long and bitter struggle. This month, a WI federal judge ordered Enbridge to shut down the stretch that crosses over tribal land. Today we hear two perspectives on what this new decision means. 

GUEST:

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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For the first time since the pandemic, Medicaid beneficiaries are being asked this year to re-verify their eligibility. Millions of people could loose their health insurance across the country. Today, the so-called Medicaid "unwinding", and what it can mean for you and your family.

GUESTS:

Becky McIntyre, Michigan Medicare/Medicaid Assistance Program Coordinator in the Upper Peninsula

Meredith Buhalis, Washtenaw Health Plan Program Manager

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Hospitals are seeing ongoing staffing shortages. But over the course of the pandemic, they've also seen rising profits. We talk about how and how much hospitals profited during the COVID–19 health emergency.

GUEST:

Matthew Miller, MLive reporter

Read Miller’s stories here, here, and here.

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Music from Blue Dot Sessions.

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The COVID pandemic put a constant strain on doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers. There were long hours, large patient loads, and a constantly changing virus. Now, COVID hospitalizations have eased, but many nurses say their working conditions have not improved. Some say they've only gotten worse. On today's episode, we’re digging into how staffing shortages at Michigan hospitals are pushing nurses out of the field–and what that means for patient care. 

GUESTS: 

Nikia Parker, emergency room nurse and paramedic in the Traverse City region 

Christopher Friese, professor of nursing and director at the Center for Improving Patient and Population Health at the University of Michigan 

Doug Tribou, Morning Edition host at Michigan Radio 

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Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions.

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Water levels among the Great Lakes have fluctuated very, very drastically in the past decade. In 2013, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron saw an all-time low. Within the next seven years, all five lakes set record highs. Lake Ontario even did it twice, setting a record high lake level in 2017, and then breaking that record in 2019. 

A hydrologist explains what over a hundred years of data can reveal about Michigan’s greatest environmental asset. Plus, what it means for the future of us fishers, kayakers, lakefront property owners, and water-drinkers here on land.

GUESTS:

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Beaches are the best. But WHICH beaches are the best? We here in the Great Lakes State have strong feelings about our fine-sand pristine beaches. But host April Baer has thoughts about the majesty of the oceanside. She's wrong... but let's hear her out. It's a pod for all my baddest beaches. 

GUESTS:

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Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the “hands free driving" bill into law on Wednesday, June 7, the second set of legislation in Michigan aimed at reducing distracted driving. The law bans drivers from using a phone for any reason, save for reporting a crime or in another emergency situation.

No more checking your email at a red light, no holding your phone to your ear at a red light, no finding the just-right song in your shuffle. Just driving.

Today, what you need to know about the new law going into effect on June 30. 

GUEST: 

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Music:

"Magic Delights" by Marc Jackson Burrows, courtesy of Audio Network

"Golden Grass" by Sour Mash, courtesy of Blue Dot Sessions

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